The 2023 Maine Food Convergence two-part event is scheduled to be held virtually via Zoom Thursday, May 18, and in person Thursday, May 25 at the YMCA Camp of Maine, 305 Winthrop Center Road in Winthrop.
The Maine Food Convergence Project is a collaborative of seven Maine food and climate networks, convening organizations, networks, and individuals to build community and collective action towards a thriving and regenerative Maine food system. This year’s event will explore how shifts in the food system can advance social and racial equity while also increasing climate resilience, according to a news release from Lauren Olson, communications manager.
Interactive virtual and in-person sessions and dialogues will center voices of those who have experienced inequities within the food system. The event aims to connect, deepen relationships, explore collaborations, and celebrate each other while working towards an equitable climate and food future.
Session topics will relate to the following guiding themes:
- Equity & Lived Experience: Food, water and land for everyone while centering lived experience in systemic inequities.
- Food Communities & Economies: From growers & harvesters to eaters.
- Culture of Wellbeing: Changing practices, narratives, and the ways people support each other.
The keynote speaker on the virtual day will feature Angela Okafor, director of community engagement for the Permanent Commission on the Status of Racial, Indigenous and Tribal Populations
of Maine.
The in-person day will feature a storytelling panel, Stories from the Field, with panelist Sass Borodkin (Resources for Organizing and Social Change & SNAHP: Solidarity Network Against Hunger & Poverty), Khadija Ahmed (Good Shepherd Food Bank, Food For All African Market, Cadeau Consulting), Hannah Smalls, (Soulful Soils & Black Farmers Fund), Lucie Nolden (Americorp VISTA member at Healthy Acadia) and Sara Trunzo (Waldo County Bounty and Our Power/Pine Tree Power).
The convergence gathers people from across Maine, across sectors, across generations, and from various backgrounds. People can register for the virtual day and/or the
in-person gathering.
Tickets are online at eventbrite.com/o/maine-food-convergence-project-30379075300. Find the full list of sessions and more details on the days’ happenings at mainefoodconvergence.org.
Sliding scale registration is available at $0-230 per participant. Travel, childcare and participation stipends are available.
For more information, email mainefoodconvergence@gmail.com.
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